2012 Hoophall Classic Related Links

SPRINGFIELD - Kaleb Tarczewski and Amile Jefferson are no strangers to one another - a byproduct of today's high school basketball recruiting scene.

In fact, the two highly touted post players are pretty good friends off the court. On Sunday, that friendship took a backseat to trying to prove superiority over the other.

Tarczewski, a 7-footer from Claremont, N.H., scored a game-high 22 points as St. Mark's School of Southborough defeated Friends' Central of Wynnewood, Pa., 67-57 at the Spalding Hoophall Classic.

The University of Arizona-bound Tarczewski relished the chance to compete against, and defeat, Jefferson - a 6-foot-9 forward who counts Duke, Ohio State, Kentucky, Villanova and North Carolina State among his most serious suitors.

"They didn't really have much too much size. Amile was really the only person down there, and he was pretty much most of their team offensively," Tarczewski said. "You could kind of tell he didn't want to get in too much foul trouble."

Jefferson scored 14 points for Friends' Central, with teammate Conrad Chambers tossing in 19. The Phoenix got to within two points at 45-43, when Jefferson scored on the first possession of the fourth quarter. From there, however, the Lions went on a 15-0 run and had the game in hand from there. The closest Friends' would get was six points.

"It was a real tough one. We're in a little bit of a slump," Jefferson said. "We'll just have to bounce back and keep fighting."

While Tarczewski is already committed to Arizona, which has the nation's No. 1 recruiting class in the eyes of many analysts, Jefferson's decision has yet to be made. Duke recently re-entered the sweepstakes, and it appears as though Jefferson is looking forward to making his final choice.

"We're going to see how it goes," Jefferson said. "I'm ready to get it over with."

St. Mark's led 32-24 at halftime, as Michigan-bound Nik Stauskas poured in 12 of his 16 points. Jaymie Spears (15) and Eric Green (11) also cracked double figures for the Lions. Green had perhaps the day's most spectacular play, as he drove through the lane for a one-handed dunk over a Friends' Central defender.